How does Pay as You Drive car insurance get odometer readings ?

crowned

New Member
5
I've heard that some car insurance companies use odometer data from their customers' cars in order to price insurance.

For instance, you might pay a fixed annual fee, and then $2 for every day that you actually drive the car. Or you pay an annual fee and then a few cents per kilometer of use.

I know that companies sometimes use OBD-II plugs with SIM cards to get live odometer updates, but is there also a way to get the data from the car via the internet. Maybe a Tesla or other modern vehicle has some way a developer / insurance company can gather information about a car (the car owner would have to agree to share the data, I imagine).

Any thoughts or info much appreciated !
 
You insert a device into the computer port in your car and the mileage is transmitted. Your base policy is cost per day and another fixed price in miles driven. I have found it to work best for seniors who don't drive much and are tech savvy or millenials who use public transportation and ride share. Your bill will show cost per day for the insurance (2.00 in your example) and the mileage cost for every mile driven ( say 49 cents) your base policy may be 300 for a 6 month term and an anticipated cost based on your estimated mileage. Actual cost could be higher or lower based on usage.
Some companies attempted to do this via cell phone app but YOU have to remember to put the phone in airplane mode so you are not tracking the miles you are not driving your car. That method does not work well.
 
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